Abstract

This chapter examines comparative history through case studies relating to the regulation of sexuality in England and Italy in the modern period. The first part of this chapter provides an overview of the aims, strengths and limits of comparative history. The second part compares the history of the regulation of female prostitution and male homosexuality in England and Italy in the second half of the nineteenth century. It illustrates some of the factors that must be taken into account when practising comparative history and how comparative history overcomes the limits of national histories.